Today began with work…for clients and on my presentation for the opening of Saturday’s session of the International Dublin Writer’s Festival. While both went well, it was late afternoon before I could set off on my adventure of the day.
When packing for this trip, I put together some outfits I would not traditionally wear at home, but knew would feel just right in Dublin.
In past trips to Ireland I had witnessed a certain fashion forward culture which encouraged me to step outside of my clothing comfort zone this time and have some fashion fun.
My outfit today was one of those— a black jumpsuit with an uneven hemline on each leg that I paired with black patterned stockings and floral velvet ankle boots. This photo is my feeble attempt to photograph the outfit. While not terrific, you get the idea——.funky and fun—-at least to me.
At this point I should probably pause and mention that I love clothes and fashion, so much so that during this trip I had hoped to find time to wander through the epicenter of Dublin fashion—-Grafton Street.
Now, back to today’s adventure:
I enjoyed a lovely early dinner at Madigans Pub on O’Connell St., followed by a stop at a The Quays Bar Temple Bar for some Irish music and a celebratory glass of Bailey’s
(Nope, not Guinness—-don’t drink beer, even when in Ireland!)
Once having my fill of both music and drink, I decided to go in search of some dessert…gelato dessert to be exact. I wandered in and around Temple Square with full confidence that no matter where I roamed, I would be able to find my way back to my hotel using my phone’s mapping system.
After checking out a few gelato shops, I ended up choosing a delicious mint chip flavor to go and set off for my home away from home.
Entering the address of my hotel into my phone, I began following the directions. The problem was my phone was lagging in keeping the map current with my walking pace. To compensate, I had to try and manually forward the map to figure out which way to go—-not easy on crowded streets with a cup of gelato in your hands!
Within a few minutes, the map wanted me to walk straight, but the street in front of me forked right and left. Again trying to figure it out, I made an executive decision to go right.
At this moment, If you are yelling at the screen asking why don’t I just read the street signs and coordinate them with my phone map….in Dublin the street signs are not set on poles at the intersections, they are attached to buildings at the intersection corners—-often a bit hard to find and/or read. Additionally they are posted exactly opposite of the way we do it in America. In other words, the sign for the street you are on is posted on the street that you are not on.
Yeah….it is that confusing.
Anyway, I started walking down the street to the right and as my phone caught up, it noted that I was now five minutes further from my hotel then I’d been just a block earlier. Clearly I’d made a wrong turn and needed to go back. The issue was, the road to the right had led me to Nirvana and I was not going anywhere but straight ahead….onto Grafton Street.
This roadway is incredibly wide and graciously welcoming to pedestrian traffic. There is almost a festival feel to the area as shoppers stroll in and out of stores with signs that herald Dior, Chanel, and Hugo Boss intersperced among a host of Dublin high fashion shops, one with windows filled with designer shoes by Manaho Blahnak, Gucci and Prada.
Needless to say, I tucked my phone into my pocket and spent the next hour window shopping to my heart’s delight. And when I finished the loop of this fashion paradise, I found myself back at the wayward fork in the road. And this time I turned left—-.and floated back to my hotel with visions of high fashion dancing in my head.